The Enforcement Directorate has filed a money laundering complaint against ex-Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey and former NSE top bosses Chitra Ramkrishna and Ravi Narain in connection with the illegal phone tapping and snooping case of employees of the stock exchange, officials said Thursday. The federal probe agency filed the case under criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), a week after the CBI booked them.
Action, drama, thriller and rom-coms, this week has a lot of entertainment coming up on OTT as well as in theatres.
In signs of increasing differences, Jet Airways' winning bidder Jalan Kalrock Consortium on Tuesday asked the airline monitoring committee's authorised representative Ashish Chhawcharia not to issue any communication on behalf of the grounded carrier without approval of all the members of the committee. Amid the continuing uncertainty over the fate of Jet Airways, which shuttered operations in April 2019, the consortium on Tuesday wrote a letter to Chhawcharia. The latest development comes more than a week after Chhawchharia reportedly shot off a letter to Sanjiv Kapoor, asking him to refrain from using the title of CEO as he was only a CEO-designate.
Benchmark indices ended nearly 1 per cent lower on Wednesday, tracking a weak trend in global markets and continuous foreign fund outflows. The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 509.24 points or 0.89 per cent to settle at 56,598.28. During the day, it tanked 621.85 points or 1.08 per cent to 56,485.67. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty declined 148.80 points or 0.87 per cent to end at 16,858.60.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear on March 3 an appeal of the Tamil Nadu government against the Madras high court order permitting the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to take out a march in the state.
The Indian entertainment industry has come away empty-handed from the International Emmy Awards 2021 in New York City on November 22.
The impact of the banking crisis in the US was visible in IT bellwether Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS) weak performance in the March quarter of fiscal 2023 (Q4FY23). The firm witnessed slower revenue growth in Q4FY23 and failed to meet its FY23 exit Ebit margin of 25 per cent as some clients, especially in the North American region, took to pausing projects and rising onsite costs offset utilisation gains. Sequentially, the company's revenue grew by just 0.6 per cent on a constant currency basis, which was one of the slowest paces in over 11 quarters.
'Even if I don't get to work for the rest of the year, I am okay with it.'
Equity benchmarks continued to remain weak on Monday with the Sensex and Nifty falling over 1 per cent each, dragged down by bank stocks and negative global market trends. The 30-share BSE Sensex, which had started the trade on a weak note, tumbled 872.28 points or 1.46 per cent to settle at 58,773.87. During the day, it slumped 941.04 points or 1.57 per cent to 58,705.11. The broader NSE Nifty declined 267.75 points or 1.51 per cent to finish at 17,490.70.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday defended the Reserve Bank's handling of the price situation, saying acting prematurely on inflation would have exerted a heavy cost on the economy and citizens. Acknowledging that the inflation target has been missed, Das said the RBI decided to support the economy by not introducing a rate hike in face of a spike in inflation. "We prevented a 'complete collapse of the economy' by keeping rates lower and stayed away from premature tightening," Das said speaking at the annual FIBAC conference of bankers in Mumbai.
Analysts have turned cautious on Cipla, as the recently issued form 483 by the US FDA with eight observations to its Pithampur (Indore) plant is expected to delay the launch of the company's key generic - Advair - in the US. The Indore plant contributes around 5 per cent of Cipla's revenues, as per analysts' estimates. While the respiratory product, which is used to treat asthma, had cleared the pre-approval inspection of the regulator at the Indore unit; the final approval could be unlikely until the company clears the recent US FDA observations, analysts say.
The Supreme Court will hear on April 5 a batch of PILs challenging the validity of certain provisions of a 1991 law that prohibits filing of a lawsuit to reclaim a place of worship or seek a change in its character from what prevailed on August 15, 1947.
Benchmark Sensex trimmed early gains to close marginally higher while Nifty settled flat in choppy trade on Tuesday as gains in auto shares were offset by selling pressure in banking and energy shares. The 30-share BSE barometer closed marginally up by 37.08 points or 0.06 per cent to 60,978.75 with 15 of its stocks ending in green and the rest in red. The index opened higher and gained over 300 points to a high of 61,266.06 in early trade.
State BJP spokesperson and OBC Morcha national general secretary Nikhil Anand came out with a stinging statement against the young Rashtriya Janata Dal leader in response to a press conference held by the latter.
Manufacturing activities in India touched a three-month high in November as new orders and exports expanded boosted by demand resilience and substantial easing of cost pressure, according to a monthly survey released on Thursday. The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) stood at 55.7 in November, up from 55.3 in October, signalling the strongest improvement in operating conditions in three months. The November PMI data pointed to an improvement in overall operating conditions for the 17th straight month.
Axis Bank on Wednesday said it has completed the acquisition of Citibank's retail business in India for a final cash consideration of Rs 11,603 crore. The sale excludes Citi's institutional client businesses in India. The third-largest private sector bank said the acquisition, announced first in March last year, will not necessitate any new capital requirements and stressed that the attrition numbers on customers are much better than expected.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who played Irrfan's friend and colleague named Shaikh in The Lunchbox, has only words of praise for the film, its director and co-star.
These are obviously not 'organic' desertions but brought about under intense military pressure, post the 9/5 arrests. It seemed as if the party was being dismantled the same way it was brought into power!, notes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W, India's external intelligence agency.
'Dharavi will be completely slum free by 2040'
Retail inflation fell to a 15-month low of 5.66 per cent in March, mainly due to a decline in food prices, government data showed on Wednesday. The inflation figure in March is within the RBI's comfort zone as it is below 6 per cent. The retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 6.44 per cent in February 2023 and 6.95 per cent in the year-ago period.
The duty hike on cigarettes by 16 per cent announced in the Union Budget 2023-24 would have a nominal impact of around 7-12 paise per stick across cigarette categories, according to experts. This upward revision in National Calamity Contingent Duty (NCCD) would have negligible impact on smokers and the companies could easily absorb the shock as it may not also have any resultant impact on margins, they said. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharama in the Union Budget for 2023-24 on Wednesday proposed to revise and increase the duty on cigarettes to about 16 per cent.
States have been told to prepare in advance to counter any impact of an adverse southwest monsoon.
'These companies hired in high numbers last year and are balancing that out this year by recruiting fewer freshers.'
Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains to close in negative territory on Thursday dragged down by IT and pharma stocks which fell amid fears of recession in the global economy. The 30-share Sensex opened higher and rose further to touch a day's high of 60,676.12 on gains in auto and capital goods shares. However, it gave up all early gains and later closed 412.96 points or 0.68 per cent lower at 59,934.01.
Tulsi Tanti, the founder chairman and managing director of Suzlon Energy and a renowned expert on renewable energy, died due to cardiac arrest on Saturday evening. Tanti, 64, who was also the chairman of the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association, was on his way to Pune from Ahmedabad when he suffered a cardiac arrest, a company official said. He is survived by his daughter Nidhi and son Pranav.
Portfolios were on Tuesday allocated in the new Bihar cabinet headed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who, predictably, retained the all-important home department which helps him keep direct control on the state police.
The Bombay high court on Tuesday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to file by Friday its affidavit in response to a petition of Videocon Group founder Venugopal Dhoot, seeking to quash an FIR registered in a bank loan fraud case, to declare his arrest as "arbitrary and illegal" and to be released on bail. When the plea came up for hearing, advocate Kuldeep Patil asked for one-week time to seek instructions on the same. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and P K Chavan said the agency shall file its affidavit by Friday and posted the petition for hearing the same day (January 13).
Software major Tata Consultancy Services on Wednesday reported a 14.8 per cent rise in net income to Rs 11,392 crore for the fourth quarter of last fiscal against Rs 9,959 crore in the year-ago period. The country's largest technology services company by market value said its revenue rose 16.9 per cent to Rs 59,162 crore during the reporting season from Rs 50,591 crore a year ago.
A Delhi court on Wednesday sent former MD and CEO of National Stock Exchange Ravi Narain to two days' custodial interrogation by Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal phone tapping and snooping on stock exchange employees. Special Judge Sunena Sharma allowed ED's plea seeking Narain's custody till September 9 after the accused was produced before him by the probe agency. ED's Special Public Prosecutor N K Matta told the court that Narain was required to be confronted with other accused persons and evidence in the matter to unearth the larger conspiracy in the matter.
Vedanta investors were jittery on Tuesday as its share price fell and bond yields of its parent firm rose following concerns raised by a rating agency on its capability to repay debt maturing later this year. Shares of the mining and metals major were down by 7 per cent on Tuesday to Rs 268 a piece on the BSE. The company has lost market valuation of 30 per cent in the last one year and 13 per cent since January 1 this year. Yields on the bonds of Vedanta Resources, the parent firm of the BSE-listed Vedanta, shot up to 39.8 per cent - showing investors' rising concern over the group's debt situation
The Bombay high court granted interim bail to Videocon Group founder Venugopal Dhoot on Friday, nearly a month after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the ICICI Bank-Videocon loan fraud case. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and P K Chavan granted bail to Dhoot on a surety of Rs one lakh. The court permitted him to furnish cash bail and then deposit the surety amount two weeks thereafter.
Jet Airways is in an advanced stage of talks with aircraft makers and lessors to lease planes and expects to restart operations in the coming weeks, according to executives at the airline. The once-storied carrier is now under the ownership of the Jalan-Kalrock consortium and its air operator certificate was revalidated by aviation regulator DGCA in May this year. The executives said the operations of Jet Airways will commence before the end of this year and the initial fleet plan is close to being finalised.
The BSE benchmark Sensex climbed 326.84 points on Monday, tracking gains in global equity markets and buying in index majors ICICI Bank and Hindustan Unilever. The 30-share BSE index gained 326.84 points or 0.62 per cent to settle at 53,234.77. During the day, it jumped 394.06 points or 0.74 per cent to 53,301.99. The NSE Nifty went higher by 83.30 points or 0.53 per cent to close at 15,835.35.
A Delhi court on Wednesday sent former Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey to nine days' custodial interrogation by Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal phone tapping and snooping of stock exchange employees. Special Judge Sunena Sharma allowed ED to quiz Pandey after the agency said he was required to be confronted with other accused in the case. Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, appearing for the ED, moved an application seeking Pandey's 14-day custodial interrogation, saying the former Mumbai Police Commissioner committed an unlawful act of tapping of MTNL phones, for which purpose Rs 454 crore was paid, and becomes proceeds of crime.
Dominic Xavier mourns the extraordinary Pulitzer Prize-winning Indian photojournalist Danish Siddiqui who was murdered by the Taliban in Kandahar, Afghanistan, July 15, 2021.
'For the first time since I've been following Indian politics, one heard voters talking about India's role on the world stage and the fact that, due to Modi's leadership, India was once again a great power.'
Uttam Ghosh salutes Danish Siddiqui, the incomparable photojournalist who was murdered by the Taliban and whose images of our times will live on for eternity.
The bank has said rent payments will not earn reward points, and redemption of reward points on various cards have been capped in certain segments.
Benchmark BSE Sensex gained 130 points on Friday after gains in index majors Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and Tata Steel ahead of the release of inflation and factory output data. Recovering from its early losses, the 30-share BSE index ended 130.18 points or 0.22 per cent higher at 59,462.78 in a range-bound trade. The broader NSE Nifty advanced 39.15 points or 0.22 per cent to close at 17,698.15.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal national executive meeting on Sunday witnessed a ruckus as RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav's elder son and Bihar cabinet minister Tej Pratap Yadav came out of the meeting fuming and called the party's national general secretary Shyam Rajak an agent of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.